Exhibition of Byzantine art from Greece. "Masterpieces of Byzantium" in the Tretyakov Gallery

Yesterday, the exhibition “Masterpieces of Byzantium” opened at the Tretyakov Gallery, held as part of the year of cross-cultural communications between Russia and Greece. The presented icons, illustrated manuscripts and small plastic objects from museums and private collections in Greece belong to different eras (from the 10th to the 16th centuries), stylistic movements and territorial schools and give an idea of ​​the diversity and richness of the artistic heritage of the great Eastern Christian empire.

The uniqueness and value of the exhibition is difficult to exaggerate. Firstly, Byzantine art is represented in domestic museums rather poorly, and attention to this rich and interesting culture in our country is undeservedly little. (This reflects both the prejudice of the Soviet era against the spiritually and churchly oriented heritage, and the difficulty for the average, poorly prepared modern viewer to perceive this sophisticated, refined and sublime art).

Secondly, each of the presented objects is an absolute masterpiece, each is an eloquent witness to the depth of philosophical understanding of existence, the height of theological thought and the intensity of the spiritual life of contemporary society.

The earliest item shown in the exhibition is a beautiful silver processional cross from the late 10th century, engraved with images of Christ, Our Lady and saints. The severity of lines and perfection of proportions characteristic of the era are complemented by the grace of finely drawn engraved medallions depicting Christ Pantocrator, the Mother of God and saints.

TO XII century refers to the red background icon “The Raising of Lazarus”, a masterpiece of the so-called “Comnenian Renaissance”. Harmony of proportions, sophistication and plasticity of gestures, full-bodied, three-dimensional figures, expressive sharp glances - character traits era. This is a time of return to the ancient principles, from which, however, Byzantine art, unlike Western European art, never radically parted. Therefore, in relation to Byzantium, such periods of special interest in the aesthetics of antiquity can be called “renaissances” only conditionally.

In this context, the icon of the Holy Great Martyr George is very interesting, representing a rare example of the interpenetration of Western and eastern traditions. The relief image of the saint in the middle belongs to the so-called “crusader art” of the 13th century, when Constantinople was under the rule of Western knights for almost a century, and craftsmen from Europe arrived in the eastern capital. The genre of painted relief itself, characteristic of Gothic imagery, has a rounded, slightly profiled volume, somewhat provincial expressiveness of the figure with big hands and head, local, bright colors are obvious features of “barbaric” art. However, the shining gold background and the more refined painting of the hallmarks betray the hand of a Greek master. In the hagiographic images in the margins, the jeweler’s fractional forms, graceful plasticity of figures, more nuanced coloring, sustained in the colors of the center, and subtle elongated facial features are striking.

The back of the icon with the image of the holy martyrs Marina and Irina again returns us to the “crusader” expressiveness with emphasized, large facial features, “talking” hands and expressive glances. However, the radiance of golden “lights” in the robe of Christ reveals the author’s unconditional admiration for the capital’s Constantinople models.

Among all the masterpieces in the exhibition, the magnificent double-sided icon of Our Lady Hodegetria and the Crucifixion from the Byzantine and Christian Museum in Athens, dating from the 14th century, is especially impressive. The monumental half-length image of the Mother of God with the Child in her arms is made in the best traditions of the capital Constantinople school of the Palaiologan era. This is the statuesque figure of Mary, an elegant silhouette standing out against a golden background, and the grace of gestures, and Her exquisitely beautiful features: almond-shaped eyes, a thin nose, a small round pink mouth, a swollen, girlish oval of the face. It would be almost earthly, sensual beauty, if not for the radiance of another world, piercing this perfect face with rays of gaps, illuminating it with spiritual light.

Since the middle of the 14th century, painting reflects new theological teachings and spiritual experience Hesychast monks, followers of St. Gregory Palamas, about uncreated divine energies. It is this light, the harmony of silence that transforms the sharply expressive composition of the crucifixion of Christ on the back of the icon into a supramundane and supra-emotional image, full of silent sorrow and prayerful burning. Against a luminous golden background, the figure of the grieving Virgin Mary in shining blue robes resembles a candle with a flame directed upward. It is important to note that with all the elongation and refinement of the proportions, the ancient basis of the entire artistic system of the Byzantines breathes in every detail: for example, the pose of the Apostle John bowed in tears echoes the curve of the body of Christ, which gives the static composition movement and vibration.

Dating back to the turn of the 14th and 15th centuries is a large icon of the holy martyr Marina, painted, of course, in the same late Palaeologian tradition as “Our Lady Hodegetria with the Twelve Feasts” of the second half of the 14th century. The finest golden spaces permeate these images, the light vibrates and enlivens, spiritualizes the images.

The exhibition also features several post-Byzantine icons painted after the fall of Constantinople in 1453. Crete became a major artistic center at this time, but gradually Greek icon painting lost the monumental expressiveness and spiritual intensity of images that distinguished the works of their predecessors.

In the image of Our Lady Cardiotissa of the first half of the 15th century, one can already feel a tendency towards an ornamentalization of a grid of spaces, towards the complexity of poses, at the same time unnaturally deployed, broken, and frozen.

The icon of St. Nicholas, made around 1500, is distinguished by the obvious influence of Italian Renaissance art in the field of color and interpretation of folds. The iconography of the saint on the throne, which became widespread in post-Byzantine art, is interesting.

Both the manuscripts and the objects of decorative and applied art brought to the exhibition are unique. Together with magnificent icons, they immerse viewers in the sublime and refined world of Byzantine imagery. They seem to reconstruct before our eyes reflections of that splendor that was born from the ancient idea of ​​beauty, oriental expression and Christian spiritual fullness.

The main thing in this art, as in this exhibition, is the state of supermundane soaring and jubilation of the spirit, permeating every image, every testimony of that amazing country, where theology was not the lot of a select minority, but the basis of the life of the empire, where the royal court sometimes lived like a monastery. charter, where metropolitan refined art could appear both in remote regions of northern Italy and in cave temples Cappadocia. We had the good fortune to touch the unknown facets of this cultural continent, from which the vast tree of Russian art at one time grew.

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about the author

Art critic, specialist in Byzantine painting, curator of exhibition projects, founder of his own gallery of contemporary art. Most of all I love talking and listening about art. I am married and have two cats. http://arsslonga.blogspot.ru/

WHAT WE BROUGHT: 18 works of art, including 12 icons.

Despite the rather small number of works (the exhibition occupied only one room), the project fully justifies its name “Masterpieces of Byzantium”. Almost every exhibit here is truly a masterpiece. Firstly, their antiquity is impressive - we can see here objects from the end of the 10th to the beginning of the 16th century. Secondly, they are all very beautiful and, as they say, excellent in their artistic level. Survivors of the fall of Constantinople in 1453 and disintegration Byzantine Empire, carefully preserved during Ottoman rule over Greece and neighboring Orthodox lands - now they are not only objects of worship or works of painting, but also evidence of the tragedies of history.

A typical example is the 14th century Crucifixion icon (with Hodegetria on the back) - one of the finest examples Byzantine art Palaiologan era. Elegant, delicate writing, pleasing to the eye harmony of gold and azure - and at the same time, the faces of the saints are barbarously destroyed.

WHERE: The Athens Byzantine and Christian Museum shared its exhibits with Moscow.

Unfortunately, it is known only to connoisseurs, and tourists who come to Athens for ancient art often forget about it. However, this is one of the most interesting museums in the city. Founded in 1914, it was originally located in a small villa that once belonged to socialite, wife of a Napoleonic officer, Duchess of Piacenza. By the end of the twentieth century, the mansion, which stood in the middle of a luxurious park, clearly ceased to accommodate all the huge collections of the Byzantine Museum. For the 2004 Olympics, the museum opened after reconstruction - three underground floors were located under the lawns and flower beds of the park, deep in the ground, while the mansion remained untouched on the surface. The colossal underground space is literally filled with sacred art of the Byzantine and post-Byzantine periods. And its visitors probably won’t notice that some things have flown to Moscow.

However, the absence of the famous “Saint George” of the 13th century from the permanent exhibition will clearly strike the eyes of visitors to the Athens museum. This unusual icon is made using the relief technique. Orthodox artists did not usually do this, but this work was created during the Crusades, under the influence of Western European masters. But the frame is familiar, canonical - made from stamps.

Another important exhibit of the exhibition, by the way, placed by the curators in the most spectacular place in the hall is the large-scale icon “Our Lady Cardiotissa”. This epithet is translated from Greek as “Hearty” and is a variant of the iconography of “Glycophilus” (“Sweet kiss”). When looking at the masterpiece, you understand that this canon of images received such tender nicknames for a reason: the Baby so affectionately reaches out to the Mother, so sweetly presses his cheek to her, that you almost forget that in front of us is an object of cult, and not a sketch from life . The name of the icon painter has also been preserved (this is not very common in Rus', but Greek masters often signed their works). Angelos Akotantos lived and worked in Crete, which at that time was under the rule of the Venetian Republic. He is considered one of the most important Greek artists of the 15th century.

Probably, an icon comes from the Constantinople workshops of the late 14th and early 15th centuries, which will be of interest to all owners of the popular name “Marina” in Russia. The fact is that Saint Marina of Antioch is depicted quite rarely in traditional Orthodox art. The Late Palaiologan icon, in which the saint appears wearing a bright red maforia and holding a crucifix (a symbol of martyrdom) in her hand, comes from the Church of St. Gerasimos in Argostoli on the island of Kefalonia and is one of the oldest surviving images of the great martyr.

OTHER MEETINGS: In addition to this museum, Greek private collectors took part in the exhibition in Moscow. You understand, seeing things from such collections is a unique chance.

From the collection of E. Velimesis - H. Margaritis comes a small but very exquisite icon “John the Baptist Angel of the Desert” from the 16th century. This plot is also familiar to Russian icon painting - John the Baptist is depicted with wings, his own severed head lies on a platter at his feet, and on the other side an ax is stuck between the trees. However, the subtlety and harmony of the writing will suggest that this beauty comes from those lands where the icon-painting tradition established in the Byzantine icon-painting workshops did not disappear for centuries.

From the Athens Benaki Museum, founded in 1930 by millionaire Emmanuel Benakis, came the oldest exhibit in the exhibition - a silver processional cross created at the end of the 10th century. On this two-way jewelry you can see fine engravings of the figures of Christ and saints. In addition to John Chrysostom, Basil the Great and other popular saints, a rare saint is depicted on the cross - Sisinius. From the inscription on the handle it is known that he was the patron saint of the customer of this cross.

PLACE: the exhibition was located in the main building of the Tretyakov Gallery in room No. 38 (usually hanging there Malyavin and the Union of Russian Artists). The curators of the exhibition especially emphasize that in the neighboring halls there is a permanent exhibition of ancient Russian art. And, having enjoyed the Athens exhibition, it’s worth taking two steps and seeing what they were doing at the same time in the northern corner of the Orthodox lands.

TICKETS: no need to buy in advance. The exhibition takes place in a hall located among the permanent exhibition, and to get to it you just need to buy a regular entrance ticket to the museum. Good news for those who are tired of besieging the site with online ticket sales for the exhibition of masterpieces from the Vatican in the nearby Engineering Building (which was recently extended until March 1).

The cross year of Russia and Greece ends with a cultural project that starts today at the Tretyakov Gallery - the exhibition “Masterpieces of Byzantine Art”. Unique monuments of the X-XV centuries, collected from Greek museums and private collections. Visitors will be able to imagine the history of the great empire and trace the mutual influence of the traditions of Eastern and Western Christian art.

Artifacts of the disappeared Byzantine Empire. The earliest is a church cross from the 10th century. Contemporary of the Baptism of Rus'. In the center there is another metal, not the original one. The insert appeared when a relic, a piece of the Holy Cross, was torn out from here.

“You and I see the two hands of the great martyr, which are raised to Christ. And his figure is clearly visible here, voluminous. It almost seems to come out from the surface of the icon, from the plane of the icon to us, to those praying,” says exhibition curator Elena Saenkova.

The curator of the exhibition is at the “volumetric” icon - these appeared in the 13th century, after the arrival of the crusaders. Two Christian worlds collided: Western and Eastern. The carving technique, clothing, even the shield at the feet of St. George are European, and the painting technique is Byzantine.

And these are not all the surprises from Byzantine masters. Double-sided icons are a rarity. For example, this one, from the end of the 14th century, depicts the crucifixion of Christ on one side, and the Mother of God on the other. Such icons are also called processional, that is, they participated in church services, celebrations, religious processions. But the most interesting thing is that art historians suggest that they were located in a special way inside the temple. One side was facing the worshipers, that is, here. And the other side - inside the altar, towards the clergy.

The dried edges, lost colors in places, and in some places the deliberately knocked-off faces of saints are more shocking than the restored images. These icons breathe time, live in every crack, in spite of all the conquerors of Byzantium.

“When the Turks took Constantinople, they began to destroy the decoration of churches, disfigure icons: they gouged out the eyes and faces of saints,” says Fedra Kalafati, an employee of the Byzantine and Christian Museum.

The unique 18 exhibits came from museums and private collections in Greece. This visit is a return visit: in the fall of 2016, an exhibition of Russian icons was held in Athens. The cross year of Russia-Greece has already ended on the calendar, but is actually closing now.

The Gospel manuscript of the 14th century is in a precious setting, with rich miniatures, perfectly preserved text and notes in the margins. The base is calfskin of the finest quality.

Nearby is an even less familiar “air” - an embroidered cover for the Holy Gifts. It was used during the Liturgy. Judging by the pattern, they covered wine. Even the threads retain their brightness from Byzantine masters, because the dyes were created from natural pigments. Cinnabar is red, lapis lazuli is blue, ocher is flesh-orange. The palette is small, but how skillfully the artists handled it.

“Looking at these icons is a great pleasure for the eye, because this is the finest painting, the finest work with paint, with color, with gold,” says director of the State Tretyakov Gallery Zelfira Tregulova.

And also - details. It would seem that this is a canonical image of the Mother of God with the Child, but how humanly and playfully the sandal slides off one of Christ’s feet.

Angel. Fragment of the icon “Great Martyr George, with scenes from his life. Great Martyrs Marina and Irina (?).” Two-sided icon. XIII century. Wood, carving, tempera. Byzantine and Christian Museum, Athens. Photo courtesy of the Tretyakov Gallery press service.

Date of: February 8–April 9, 2017
Place: Lavrushinsky lane, 10, room 38

Curator: EAT. Saenkova
Participating museums: Byzantine and Christian Museum, Benaki Museum, collection of E. Velimezis - H. Margaritis
Compound: 18 exhibits: 12 icons, 2 illustrated manuscripts, liturgical objects - processional cross, air, 2 katsei

An interesting exhibition opens at the Tretyakov Gallery. It will feature works of Byzantine and post-Byzantine art from museums and private collections in Greece. These are monuments from the end of the X century, which give an idea of ​​the different periods of Byzantine art. The art of Byzantium is a priceless treasure of the world, especially important for the development of Russian culture. The exhibition “Masterpieces of Byzantium” is located next to the halls of the permanent exhibition of ancient Russian art of the 11th–17th centuries, which allows the viewer to trace parallels and see the features of the works of Russian and Greek artists.

« At the exhibition, each of the works is a unique monument of its era. The exhibits provide an opportunity to present the history of Byzantine culture and trace the mutual influence of the traditions of Eastern and Western Christian art. The earliest monument in the exhibition is a silver processional cross from the end of the 10th century with images of Christ, the Mother of God and saints engraved on it.

The art of the 12th century is represented by the icon “The Raising of Lazarus,” which embodies the sophisticated, refined style of painting of that time. The collection of the Tretyakov Gallery contains the icon “Our Lady of Vladimir” from the same era, created in Constantinople in the first third of the 12th century and then brought to Rus'.

One of the most striking exhibits of the exhibition is a relief with the image of the Great Martyr George with scenes from his life. It serves as an example of the interaction between Byzantine and Western European masters, which laid the foundation for the phenomenon of the Crusader workshops - a most interesting page in the history of the 13th century. The wood carving technique in which the figure of St. George is made is not typical for Byzantine art and was obviously borrowed from Western tradition, while the magnificent frame of stamps was created in accordance with the canons of Byzantine painting.

Icon of “The Mother of God and Child”, painted in early XIII century, presumably by a Cypriot master, demonstrates another way of mutual influence of medieval art of the East and West. In the artistic culture of this period, associated with the revival of the empire and the Palaiologan dynasty, the movement towards ancient traditions was perceived as a search for one’s cultural identity.

The mature style of art of the Palaiologan era belongs to the double-sided image “Our Lady Hodegetria, with the Twelve Feasts.” The throne prepared” at the end of the 14th century. This icon is a contemporary of the works of Theophanes the Greek. Both artists use the same artistic techniques; in particular, the thin lines piercing the faces of the Mother of God and the Child, symbolizing the energies of divine light. This image is obviously a copy from the miraculous Constantinople icon of Hodegetria.

Several objects tell about the wealth of decorative and applied art of Byzantium, including a katsea (censer) with the image of the Great Martyrs Theodore and Demetrius and an embroidered air (cover) for the Holy Gifts. The artists’ technique was particularly virtuosic, decorating manuscripts with complex, exquisite ornaments in headpieces, initials and miniatures with images of evangelists. The level of their skill is demonstrated by two Gospel codes - the 13th and early 14th centuries.

The post-Byzantine period is represented by three icons of Greek masters who left for Crete after the fall of Constantinople in 1453. These works allow us to trace the synthesis of creative findings of European art and the traditional Byzantine canon.

The Byzantine artistic tradition stood at the origins of the formation of the art of many peoples. From the very beginning of the spread of Christianity in Kievan Rus Greek artists and architects passed on to Russian masters the skills of temple construction, fresco painting, icon painting, book design, and jewelry art. This cultural interaction continued for many centuries. From the 10th to the 15th centuries, Russian art went from apprenticeship to high mastery, preserving the memory of Byzantium as a fertile source, long years spiritually nourished Russian culture." - reports the press service of the Tretyakov Gallery.

"Masterpieces of Byzantium". There are only 18 works on display, but each of them is a unique example of its time.

Kacei handle. Around 1300. Fragment

Byzantium – where is it?

Angel. Fragment of an icon

Byzantium is a state that appeared on the world map in 395, after the fall of the Roman Empire and the division of its territory into the western and eastern parts. Just 80 years after these events, the Western Roman Empire ceased to exist, and Byzantium remained the only full-fledged successor to all the achievements of Rome and antiquity. Its capital, Constantinople, began to be called the second Rome. Hence Moscow, as the capital of the Russian state and the successor of Byzantine traditions, received the unofficial title of the Third Rome. Russian princes periodically married Byzantine princesses to emphasize this connection. The state of Byzantium lasted until 1453, when the Turks captured Constantinople, turning it into Istanbul.

"Our Lady Hodegetria", XIV century

Byzantine art has always stood on the threshold between Western European (read: Roman Catholic) and Eastern European (read: Old Russian) art. It served as a filter for traditions and new trends, which later had a strong influence on the formation of artistic principles in Kyiv, Vladimir and Novgorod, where Greek masters and their students went to work. The icon “Our Lady Hodegetria, with the Twelve Feasts. The Prepared Throne,” presented at the exhibition, is a contemporary of the works of Theophanes the Greek, who came to Rus' from Constantinople, the famous teacher of the main Russian icon painter Andrei Rublev. Russian masters initially copied Greek designs, sometimes adding some additional image elements to the image. The image of “Our Lady Hodegetria” or “Guide” with the Baby Jesus in her arms was one of the most common in Byzantine and Old Russian art. This type of icon includes, for example, the Tikhvin, Smolensk, Kazan and Iveron icons of the Mother of God. And here is the Vladimir Icon Mother of God refers to another type - “eleusa” or “tenderness”. Unlike Hodegetria, Eleusa hugs the Baby to herself and touches his head with her cheek.

Why are there icons at the exhibition, but no sculptures? Did they even exist?

Great Martyr George, with scenes from his life

Yes, there were wooden images of Christ in Byzantine and Old Russian art. Some researchers believe that the Council of Nicaea in 325 banned the creation of sculptural images of saints. This is not so: the Council of Nicaea drew up instructions on how to paint icons, but there was no list of clear prohibitions. Most likely, the lack of wide distribution of sculpture in Rus' was due to the fact that at first Christian preachers had to fight paganism and idolatry, so the tradition of volumetric sculpture never developed. Although wooden images were actually created in both Novgorod and Pskov. The exhibition features a unique three-dimensional relief “Great Martyr George, with scenes from his life,” where the figure of the saint protrudes above the surface of the icon. Also in the exhibition you can see a katseyaya (censer) with a three-dimensional image of the Mother of God and a beautiful chased ornament along the contour and an embroidered air (cover) for the Holy Gifts, which were used in church processions.

It turns out that all Byzantine art was religious?

Processional cross. End of the 10th century

No, that's not true. Byzantium was a secular state, although very pious. At the court of the Comneni, Palaiologos and Angels there always existed a large number of masters glorifying the luxury and wealth of the emperor with their art. Many silver cups, gold bowls, decorated precious stones and enamel, bone carvings and jewelry. But, unfortunately, they are not presented at the exhibition. This time, exhibits from the collection of the Byzantine and Christian Museum, the Benaki Museum, and the collection of Velimesis and Margaritis arrived at the Tretyakov Gallery. They are located in adjacent rooms with works of ancient Russian art, so that guests can compare these options Orthodox icon painting and feel their closeness and unique characteristics.